A Guatemalan national, Esvin Emilio Lopez-Gonzalez, has been sentenced to time served after pleading guilty to illegally reentering the United States following a prior removal. The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti.
Senior United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti handed down the sentence to Lopez-Gonzalez, age 27. According to court records, Lopez-Gonzalez had previously been removed from the country on May 7, 2018, after entering illegally through Arizona. On May 28, 2025, special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation encountered him and he failed to provide identification. Immigration authorities determined that he did not have permission to be in the U.S. following his earlier removal.
Lopez-Gonzalez has remained in custody since his arrest in May and will now be transferred back into immigration custody for removal proceedings.
Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca L. Silinski prosecuted the case.
Acting United States Attorney Rivetti said: "U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Enforcement and Removal Operations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Lopez-Gonzalez."
The prosecution is part of Operation Take Back America, an initiative by the Department of Justice aimed at eliminating cartels and transnational criminal organizations, addressing illegal immigration issues, and working to protect communities from violent crime.
